The Hollywood Bowl... is also a public park!
DETAILS:
Location: 2301 N Highland Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90068
Hours of Operation:
Hollywood Bowl “Park”: Sunrise to sunset, but subject to closure due to rehearsals or Bowl events.
Hollywood Bowl Museum:
Summer hours (June thru mid-September):
Tuesday thru Saturday: 10AM to show time / Sunday: 4PM to show time (Closed on Mondays)
Off season hours (late-September thru June)
Tuesday thru Friday: 10AM to 5PM (Closed Saturday thru Monday)
Parking: Free parking lot at the bowl.
Cost: FREE! The museum is free as well.
Time Commitment: 30 minutes. Longer if you plan to visit the museum which shouldn’t take longer than another hour.
Miscellaneous:
The museum is on the smaller side and won’t take very long to get through. The permanent exhibition on the first floor details the history of the bowl. The second floor is reserved for rotating exhibits. Please see their website below (under “resources”) for current 2nd floor exhibits.
On certain days of week during bowl season, you can watch the LA Philharmonic rehearse at the bowl for free! These rehearsals typically run on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9AM to 12PM, but this is always subject to change. Please call ahead to make sure they’re rehearsing and allowing visitors on the desired date. (323) 850-2000
One of the best parts about summers in Los Angeles is getting to catch a show at the Hollywood Bowl. One of the worst parts is getting in & out of the Hollywood Bowl for any of those shows. But what if I were to tell you that you could visit the Hollywood Bowl pretty much any time you wanted and have the entire venue almost completely to yourself along with prime free parking right in front of the entrance? You’d probably think I was drinking from a bowl of crazy, but I’m here to tell you that this is an absolute possibility. That’s because a little known fact about the Hollywood Bowl is that it’s also a public park meant for your leisurely enjoyment. For those of you who’ve been to a show at the Bowl, it’s a little disconcerting at first when you’re roaming about since it’s a veritable ghost town during park hours which is in stark contrast to the mass of humanity that overpopulates the bowl during show times. But tranquility eventually settles in and all there’s left to do is have a seat, any seat you want, and take in the gorgeous scene around you. I usually like to take a few moments sitting front row center since I know this’ll never happen otherwise. We talking mortgage payment money here. Ouch!
The Bowl has a free museum that you can visit most days of the week as well which contain permanent and rotating exhibits relating to the Bowl and its historic past. Also, if you time your park visit just right during Bowl season, you can watch the LA Philharmonic rehearse... for free! And since you’re in the area, why not drive up to the Jerome C. Daniel Overlook which is about a mile away. The Overlook provides some great elevated views of the Bowl and the surrounding area including downtown and the Hollywood Sign. Now that’s what I call a day in the park!
